METHOD FOR ESTIMATING THE SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

Abstract

[EN] Nowadays, sustainability assessments tend to focus on the biophysical and economic considerations of the built environment. Social facets are generally underestimated when the appraisal of investment in infrastructure projects is carried out. This study proposes a method to estimate the contribution of infrastructure projects to social sustainability. This method takes into account the interactions of an infrastructure with its environment, in terms of the potential for short and long-term social improvement. The method is structured in five stages:(1) social improvement criteria and goals to be taken into account are identified and weighed; (2) an exploratory study is conducted to determine transfer functions;(3) each criterion is homogenized through value functions; (4) the short and long-term social improvement indices are established; and finally, (5) social improvement indices are contrasted to identify the socially selected alternatives and to assign an order of priority. The method was implemented in six alternatives of road infrastructure improvement. The results of the analysis show that the method can distinguish the contribution to social sustainability of different infrastructure projects and location contexts. This article proposes a mechanism to measure the social efficiency of projects according to the early benefits and potential long-term equitable improvement. This method can be applied prior to the implementation of a project and can complement environmental and economic sustainability assessments.